Detachment

by Ghep

There is always something fascinating and horrifying when you are stuck in a medieval fantasy. To see, how utter alien and normal, and to be looked like a stranger destroying the order. Here am I, wanting to get out there. (SI)

33. XXXIII - Ao vencedor, as batatas

The Plegians march towards Ylisstol as if they have found their promised land. In that light, it's a walk towards the heart of light, where good shall prevail and evil shall be stopped. Once upon a time, This where the shepherds came from and stopped Grima from destroying the world.

It's a funny thing when the opposite happens and you are in the middle of the catastrophe.

If I had been given the chance to follow the script, my place in this story would be Ylisse, the land of the Shepherds. Perhaps, the enemy would turn into an ally and the allies would turn into enemies. For that, it would only be needed to fall in with Ylisstol instead of the Plegian desert. Then, things would follow the natural order of the game…

How naive of a thought.

For all of that happiness and moments of sanity can only be fantasy. Reflet was already standing with Plegia, either turning or already turned into Grima. What difference would I have made? None, I would have only been another in a realm of millions. Even if I had been in Southtown, I would have been another corpse among the dead.

Plegia making me survive? What a blasted damnation. Such an irony could only be proposed by the simplest reversal of the route taken in the story, a simple course beyond anyone's control. Worse still, people are going to die because of one change in allegiances.

As they say, laugh to not cry. Laugh to not cry, but even laughter is bitter. For the decision on who shall live and who shall not lies on Reflet, the Vessel marching onto the final confrontation, alone.

As for what is left of my agency? There's nothing of the sort. After all, what can a corpse do beyond lying around and waiting to crumble into nothing?

Once in a while, me and Tharja's eyes meet. She scoffs and frowns at my sight, turns her gaze away and returns her focus to the march. Rinse and repeat.

A pang forms in my heart as I stare down at the ground, ashamed of my choices. My selfish stewing over my ignoble misery.

An awful reality, but Tharja had made the right choice.

On the path towards Ylistol, our boots and shoes crack upon the stone road towards the capital. Green pastures dotted with forests stand at our sides, and the bird chirps like maniacs. To complement the idyllic scenery, the morning sun greets us under a cloudless blue sky.

The sun gazes down at his kingdom in the most sardonic of ways: by enlightening the massacre we shall commit. The army doesn't play with his game, the silent procession is the answer they give him.

The forest clears out for a bit to reveal pastures and the tilled soil where many crops once laid. Now the camps are barren with no sight of any harvest or booty to be collected. There are no houses either, leading to some groans at the lack of things to see. It's par for the course, of course, the boredom is always going to last.

I wouldn't mind a little bit of Henry. At least I wouldn't have to ramble about myself so much. However, his reaction to me is the same as Tharja, his monotone indifference the only difference, the sly grin nowhere to be found.

A white marble tower emergers in the background. It cuts through the air until it reaches the bottom corner of the sun. Its rays soon cast the shadow of the tower over us. Our 'holy' duty is clear to us: we shall destroy the construction and meet the sun's derisive rays.

Reflet hastens the march, the tempo of your boots increase as to match vessels in all her 2/4 beat glory. Grima sings to herself a march, her voice breaks through my monotony as I fix my gaze at the white-haired vessel.

For the thousandth time, I arose upon this land.

Life blossomed at my feet and greeted me

Marching upon thee, I retrieve my past

Litany foretold it, there shall be none

Her voice raptures me, making the march a little bit more bearable.

As we proceed toward the Ylissean capital, the tower covers the entire sun and we are left to gaze upon the gates, the main obstacle between us and the city. We are on a small hill leading straight for it.

Reflet stops moving as her singing grows to a higher pitch and grows into dissonant melodic intervals. Reflet raises her arms to the sky and turns around to face us. Her red eyes fixate on mine and she gives me a grin, making me shiver. I backpedal, but the person right behind me makes any further movement impossible. Sweat flows over my brow and my belly feels colder than winter.

Her singing stops and I blink in response. I turn my head to look around and see a lake and more abandoned fields and houses;

Now that we are fully beneath its shadow, the tower looms hauntingly upon us, above the rest of the city and with a top resembling a spearhead. A primus inter pares.

What's inside shall be our holy grail. The panacea which shall 'cure' us from conflict. For now, though, that prize looks down upon us, the invaders.

My eyes slowly trickle down from the tip of the spear and to its base: the walls. They are not actually connected, but the tower feels like just a small appendage of the bigger whole, its white color contrasting with its imposing nature. The height of the thing makes me feel like an ant standing against an elephant.

We are supposed to destroy this? It's madness.

Are there archers on the top of these walls?

I stay put, tightening the grip on my tome. The sandy walls turn to gray as Themis' massacre comes back to my mind. Deja vu, the memory is already there, written down. The only difference is the darn color between these walls and Themis'. The Vessel can topple this monstrosity?

I laugh at the stupid rhetorical question and my voice frays. Gangrel, Validar and Grima will have their sweet taste of victory. The city will be razed to the ground. Of course it was only a matter of time after Chrom's death. Perhaps a pyrrhic victory would spell the end of this conquest, but wishes don't make reality.

I feel someone glaring at me, and that feeling makes me want to throw up. How could I let such a display of craziness happen?

I turn and face the raven-haired mage and find her staring at me with her brow furrowed. My laughter stops, my throat sore, I look at the ground, kick it for a moment and then look back up.

"Sorry."

She nods and goes back to attention with the same grouch behavior. Her head twitches a little while she fails to keep her gaze on our objective.

I sigh and pinch the bridge of my nose. Never has the price of existence felt so expensive.

Meanwhile, Reflet places a hand on the hilt of her sword. Her Cheshire grin is nowhere to be found, there are only the furious eyes of a predator.

"We have walked into this cursed land. Without any falter, we have defeated our enemies and made an example of them. Rubbles is all that is left of Themis. The Ylissean prince's cursed existence was brought to its proper end."

Grima unsheaths her sword and brandishes it to the sky, parallel to the tower. The furious gaze shifts to a faint grin.

"We stand on the precipice of this new era. The fall of this city shall be the start of our final goals! Of the end of this cycle! The end of this reality! My fellow Grimleals, today our work shall be fulfilled!"

Her faint smirk has now grown into a full-tooth smile, the deep red glow of her eyes rivaling the sun's own. Most of the mages roar with the speech, waving their tomes as if they were the tables of the ten commandments. Before long, the roars turn to chants and prayers before the Halidom. The loyal soldiers of the Grimleals are ready to dish out their vengeance upon their sworn enemy.

My body trembles at the sight, my left hand twirls as I clutch my heavy tome. The noises of the prayer are piercing through my ears and when I look at Reflet's eyes and jovial smile, I can't help but– what stupid massacre is she going to do?

I look around the cacophonic crowd, my head tumbling with the noise. Tharja whispers a prayer, placing a hand on her chest. There is a quaint smile on her face and I blink. I turn my sight away from the lady, grit my teeth. There is no hope anymore.

Please, Reflet stop this!

Henry approaches me, places his arm around my neck and whispers, "If it wasn't for her human skin, there wouldn't be any distinction between her and those globs of energy that Validar and those idiots call guards."

I nod as I turn to face Henry. There is a frown rather than a smile on his face, and the hand he has over my shoulder is clenched.

"Excuse me." He grins but the contempt in his eyes is still noticeable, especially when they squint tightly at Reflet. As he removes his arm and starts heading for the front near Grima, he adds, "As for you, Gabriel, good luck with the beast. The battle will be easy compared to whatever is about to come from her."

I nod to the man. Um, dois, três. There isn't enough time for anything back in the world.

Grima lowers her sword and raises her left hand in the air. "Hold on, the main army shall join us soon. Nothing is to be done for now."

From the corners of my sight, I see a formation of soldiers walking through the slope of the hill. Their boots stomp on the stone ground, a howling of cracks roaring up to the sky. It doesn't take much longer for us to be surrounded by the red uniforms of the soldiers.

The massive silhouette of Mustafa passes through the ranks of our formation and stops near Grima. I turn my gaze to the hulking man as he looks down at Henry, a hand on the shoulder as he mutters something. I can't hear what it is, but I see Henry nod as Mustafa steps away. The dark mage waves his hand happily as the general disappears back in the crowd of soldiers.

Grima makes an audible cough and turns her head around to glare at Henry before her gaze shifts to something else. Henry coughs back to the Vessel, but Grima ignores him. I turn around and see everyone glaring at the white-haired maniac. It only takes a few seconds of his slasher smile to make everyone but Tharja back off.

When the crowd of red and silver-clad soldiers marches forth and fills our vision, the once visible gates soon disappear behind them. Our group of dark mages stays behind them, some kicking the ground impatiently, others praying at the procession.

Grima raises her left hand to the sky again. "Wait some more. You shall get what you want in a few seconds."

They stop kicking and muttering as the battlefield returns to just the sound of marching plate boots. I can only gulp and look up to the sky.

The tactician turns around and waves us away. "Get back. Keep out of the archers' reach."

Everyone turns around and does as ordered, but I merely backpedal. In doing so, I manage to see that Henry doesn't move, and Reflet glare at him.

"I'm not going to move an inch from here, unless you march with them."

The Vessel grins at that ultimatum. "The problem is yours, not mine." She shrugs, steps away from him and her gaze follows the charging army.

I look around and my heart thumps. Great, great. great. Why are you so nervous all of a sudden!?

The harsh sounds of volleys reach my ears as I hear bodies hitting the ground.

"Well, well, well, would you look at that?" Reflet says as she steals a glance at the ground near Henry's feet. I follow her example and find an arrow stuck there. The dark mage remains unfazed and faces Reflet with his usual grin, followed by a waving finger and his tongue clicking.

In response, Reflet places the blade of her sword in her free hand. "You had better join the others. Or when this is over, you may be left in no position to test on any more bodies."

Henry kicks the ground and shrugs his shoulders before heading to apparently rejoin our squad. However, he doesn't actually join them, and just keeps to the sidelines, his hands trembling in anger. As I look at Grima, I find her glaring at him.

From our position, we are able to see the whole of the valley before the wall. Already, there are many bodies and weapons sprawled around the battlefield, the cacophony of shields hitting metal and the collective screams of soldiers hit by arrows, a grim background music.

Soon, there are ladders standing against the walls.

"Flux users, aim at the top of the walls and eliminate those archers," Grima orders us.

I crack open the tome. Um, dois, três. The mist passes through my arms and I conjure little orbs within the palm of my hand. I raise my arm and close one of my eyes. The targets are small little blue dots protruding from the white structure. Smudges of paint all over the building.

One dot stands a bit more still than the others and I cast my first orb, which mixes with all the others. Few of them actually hit the walls, while most fly past them.

The blue dot I'd spotted moves away from its position. Droga!

I aim a little bit to my left. Hopefully it shall reach between the gaps of the wall.

GO!

I cast the second orb, which comes later than the others'. Nevertheless, the same scene plays out, with only a couple differences. One of the dots disappears before others come to replace it, and others plummet from the walls.

I cast another orb against the archers. Meanwhile, some red dots have started climbing the ladders, with some falling before they can reach their objective. The volleys of arrows grow less frequent, their strident sounds leaving my ears and replaced by that of flying spells.

While our suppressive fire continues, the soldiers manage to reach the top of the walls.

"Cease casting," Reflet suddenly commands, a hand raised in the air. I look at the sky again and find it devoid of anything flying in either direction, and my focus shifts to the sandy walls. The red dots are now like ants, black lines crawling up walls and circling around their food.

"March."

I close my tome as Reflet marches and I have to hasten my pace to keep up with the others.. Meanwhile, the Vessel keeps singing the same tune as before. Meanwhile, no more arrows fly toward us. It's more than likely that the archers are gone for now.

To be honest, I was expecting more bloodshed. The sounds were louder than a Mahler's symphony trying to be epic, but I can see a few corpses around. Well, few compared to the piles and the mass graves in Themis.

I place my hand underneath my chin. Was the exalt so naive as to not prepare a more formidable contingent? Have we already destroyed the army the other day? I doubt that, nobody leaves their capital unprotected, not even in the face of constant losses.

Or…

A pit forms in my stomach. Of course, if Chrom's remaining army fled through to the capital, this can only mean one thing.

I gulp at the thoughts of Tharja's and Reflet's dead bodies.

Wait, where are Reflet and the others?

I look around myself, and find soldiers wearing red, corpses wearing red, but no one wearing the black cloaks. Where are they?

Damn, Gabriel! You somehow got lost!?

I look around. All the ladders are occupied by soldiers climbing over them. A massive contingent stands in front of the gate as I hear them trying to push it open. Did I disperse into this crowd? If they did, I can't find them among so many! What other option is there?

My eyes land on a mostly free ladder at the very end, with a group of soldiers arguing over who gets to climb first..

Fuck it!

I run towards the direction. "Esses caras não podem usar a porra de uma escada direito?" I mutter to myself. How the heck shall I get to use it!?

A massive bangs suddenly deafens me. The soldiers that were by the ladder stop pushing each other and move away, leaving it for me to climb. That said, more bangs fill my ears, each louder than the previous. So much so that I have to press my head between a hand and the opposite shoulder to cover my ears. Fucking loud noises!

As I reach the ladder, I realize I still have a hand occupied by my tome. How the heck am I supposed to climb it now?

I end up placing the book in my mouth and biting down on the leathery cover. It is quite a weight on my jaw, but it is all I can do.

I place my hands on the round steps of the ladder and push my body up. I gaze upward and find no soldier coming to kill me. Not even a lonely archer, but what if! I hasten my pace and blast through the stair until I reach the top and let go of the tome, which thuds against the stone ground.

I place my hands against my knees and gasp for air. I look to my right and blink. There are only a few bodies, sparsely spread across the thin platform. When I look on the left, there are none at all. Where are the bodies? This is way too clean for a capital's last defense.

There is definitely something wrong going on here.

I lean over the railing and gaze upon the city before me. A city filled with houses as far as the eye can see, as well as towers, plazas and more structures.

On the left, I spot a redhead guarding a wagon, very close to the walls. On the right, there is what seems to be the main avenue of the city. Plegian troops are entering in droves. Mustafa and Validar are talking to each other. But where are the Ylisseans?

My eyes follow the avenue all the way to the central plaza of the city, where a bunch of dots stand together. Ylisstol's soldiers, perhaps?

Why aren't they here? There are several meters between here and there. Maybe even a kilometer. Why?

Oh no. It is-

"Get down, Gabriel!" a voice screams. I look down and see the Vessel waving and pointing down. I look for the stairs and quickly rejoin Reflet.

"Finally, you are here! Where were you?" Grima says while glaring down at me. I avert my eyes from her, tapping my foot against the ground and rubbing the back of my head. Then I shrug and lift my head to glare at her .

"I was lost in thought and lost sight of you. But, there's something more important to worry about."

Grima lifts an eyebrow in doubt. "What could be more important than where you were? Don't you know you could have been killed"

I ignore her question and place both hands on her shoulders and she tilts her head.

Right behind her, there is the group I was separated from, and they're all glaring at me.

"Excuse me," Grima says as she removes my hands from her shoulders.

She turns to face the dark mages and slowly approaches them, every step cackling against the ground while her left hand rests on the hilt of her sword. The dark mages pray to her as if they had won a prize, until Grima comes close to them. They stop praying and look up, the Vessel's presence dwarfing theirs.

Reflet places her hand on one's shoulder, making that person shudder. The hand slowly crawls towards the man's throat. I can hear a prayer still coming out from him before Grima grabs her prey's neck.

The dark mage gags as they try to shove off Grima's arm, to no avail, the dragon maintaining a tight grip. The others don't even dare interfere. I gulp at the unfolding scene, rubbing my neck while bitter emotions flow through me.

"Don't interrupt me ever again or else."

She releases the mage, who falls to the ground and gasps for air. Few of the others come to his help, with the few who do lifting him up while the others look away and scoff at the scene.

There is, however, still one stare amidst the crowd: that of Tharja's wide open eyes. She sighs in relief before stopping with her stare and looking elsewhere.

"Who is interrupt-"

I walk to the Vessel and put my hand on her shoulder.

"Focus! Focus! We don't have the time to strangle anyone! There is a trap here. I don't know what it might be exactly, but the fighters are way too far away from us!"

I move a hand away from her shoulder and point to the main avenue. "I don't think they would just abandon their city so quickly! Whatever they're planning, crossing this place might be brutal!"

A small smile comes to Reflet's face before it turns into another Cheshire grin, after which she… explodes into laughter? Wait, what?

She places a hand against her mouth, but only partially and barely masking the sound. She lowers her torso and hugs her stomach with her other arm while cackling.

I stare dumbfounded at her while sweat burns against my brows.

"Gab!" Reflet stops laughing and removes tears from her eyes. "Gab! What an amazing joke you just made!" The smile that accompanies her cold eyes makes me shiver. "We have Mustafa's army for that very reason. Who else should spring the obvious trap?"

What!?

"Don't you think that might be too cruel? We've already penetrated the main gate, if we are more careful we could avoid unnecessary casualties."

Reflet shrugs at my answer before chirping back, "Don't worry. This has always been part of the plan."

I blink as I watch her walk toward Mustafa and Validar.

Why? Why lead someone fighting for you to their death?

Validar makes a smug grin before excusing himself and leaving. The general lowers himself to Reflet's level, and the woman whispers something in his ears. For a moment, the general looks confused, but then he nods, lifts himself up and turns to face his troops.

"Soldiers, we march!" he announces as he points in the plaza's direction. "We need to capture the central plaza over there at all costs!" Without any hesitation, his troops start marching toward the massive death corridor, and Reflet walks back to me.

"Don't worry, Gabriel. I have a lot of reasons for doing this." Reflet has a smug grin plastered on her face, which she turns to a more casual smile when she's closer to one. She hums a cheerful tune to herself and shakes her head faintly.

I frown. "Are you serious?"

"Yes, of course I am!" Reflet takes a more neutral stance, her voice becomes more serious and she stops swaying back and forth as she stares directly into my eyes. "If I wasn't, all of this would be for naught," she adds before going back to the head of our squad.

I gaze up to the sky and sigh as I realize this is indeed going to be a long day. I walk back in formation and no one tries to glare at me anymore, aside from one specific raven-haired dark mage. Her leering gaze makes me want to look anywhere else, but I swallow the shame long enough to stare back at her. She gruffs and rolls her eyes, before looking ahead once more.

The bitter feeling in my heart surfaces once again. We are strangers once more, only this time I'm the one to blame, not her.

Boots cracking against stone and the humming sounds of soldiers are the only sounds in an otherwise silent world. However, there is no talking among the members of our group, nor is Grima barking any order at the moment.

Henry sticks to the backlines, with his grinless face lowered to the ground as he kicks the ground around him. The tome in his hand is open, but he's holding by some random page rather than the spine.

I don't dare to look at Tharja. Doing so would cause me to vomit.

With nothing better to do, I watch troops swarming through the avenue like ants. Their formation is too tight though, with soldiers squeezing against each other.

My observations are interrupted when I hear several twangs, and before long a wave of arrows rains down on the soldiers. Screeches come their positions in front of us, as well as the sound of arrowheads hitting either their targets or the stone ground, and the cacophony assaults my ears, causing me to grit my teeth in discomfort.

Some soldiers manage to shield themselves, but many fail and fall dead, hindering the advance of those behind them. Those same hindered soldiers are then an easy target when a second volley strikes, leaving large gaps in the formation.

At that sight, Reflet stops in her steps. "There are archers on the buildings. Get up there and kill everyone." She makes a large grin, unsheathes her sword and rushes off. My attempts to call out to her are for naught, and she disappears among the soldiers' ranks.

The squad goes into disarray, with the mages looking at each other confusedly with no idea of where they're supposed to go. Some decide to retreat from the battlefield, others opt to hold their position. Only a few actually decide to head into the meat grinder ahead.

"What is she doing!?" Henry angrily demands.

I can only as I turn to him. "Whatever it is, she will survive it."

Henry's hands are clenched when he turns to face me, an angry smile on his features. "I hate to ask, but can you help me eliminate those gut-filled bastards that are slaughtering dad's troops?"

Isn't that what Reflet just ordered? But then again, where exactly are the archers supposed to be? Are we supposed to just charge in like the Vessel did?

Dammit Reflet, you should have given clearer instructions! This right now is just a mess!

I try to step away from Henry, but he approaches me with a more subdued expression. "Please?"

I sigh before assenting, a frown on my face as I do so.

Henry's following smile unnerves me. So does the ominous X-shaped symbol that appears on his forehead before he walks into the fray and starts slinging spells left and right.

While the white-haired mage is busy shooting, I look around for a safe gap I could pass through or some cover I could use. I risk a few steps forward before stopping.

I notice arms protruding from the walls of the houses on my left and right. They are behind covers, but the shiny arrowheads are giving away their positions.

Um, dois, três. I take aim, and the mist of Flux crawls across my arm until it reaches my hand and an orb forms. Before my target can retreat into the house, the orb is cast and flies through the sky.

I grit my teeth, but I don't get to see if my spell lands, as an arrow flies right in front of my eyes. I look to the side, and find another arrow already being aimed at me.

Fuck!

Before the arrow can actually be shot, the whitehead comes in front of me, and an X resembling the one on his forehead is conjured over the archer, who recoils and misses us.

Henry takes a glance at me.

"Be careful, Gabriel. If it hadn't been for Ruin, that archer would have skewered your brains right out of your head."

Great, I have to thank Henry for my survival. What a great timeline to be in!

"Ok, thanks."

Henry gives me a smirk, I walk past the man when I notice the door to the building the archer was shooting from. I run straight to it, avoiding the bodies littered around.

I reach the door and grab its knob, only to find it not opening. Dammit!

I try to kick the door down, but it doesn't budge. Damn my weak body!

I rub my brow, trying to think of ways to open this motherfucker. I only come up with one when I force my tome shut. I have a tome for fuck's sake!

Um, dois, três. I conjure a big orb and aim at the pernicious, hellish door handle. Just do it! The orb hits the metal, which falls down to the ground and I kick the door open before rushing inside.

I hear a thud behind me and find an arrow stuck on the door when I look behind. I have a momentary vision of that reaching me and my body falling lifeless, but I shake my head in an attempt not to think of what could have been.

I scan the room, and find stairs in the right corner of the room. There is also an open door leading somewhere, a table the only thing between me and it. I gulp, wondering if the archer escaped through that. Nevertheless, I approach the door while keeping an eye on the stairs. I peek inside what seems to be a kitchen, but find no one. Could the archer have hidden?

As I step away from the door and toward the stairs, I hear a creak right above me. I look up to the ceiling and then at the stairs, wondering what it could have been. Then there's another creak.

Um, dois, três. If Flux was enough to break a door handle, this is going to hurt them.

The orbs of the spell hit the ceiling, making a small hole in it. I hear someone falling to the ground while they scream in pain. I prepare another orb and walk to the stairs, crouching and preparing to face the man with every step.

The stairs loops on themselves before reaching a small open door, through which I spot a weeping man, his face contorted as he clutches his bleeding leg. His bow and arrows are sprawled on the floor, and I walk into the room already aiming at his head. He gazes and trembles at my presence and tries to drag himself away from me

With a sigh, I shoot the orb to his head and his body falls down.

I take a glance around the room. The only furniture here is a bed and a small table. The window is wide open and there is more than enough cover to haul up in here.

Underneath me, the battle is continuing, the dead piling up all over. I frown at the sight, but my observations are interrupted by a new volley of arrows. Remember, Henry's task!

My eyes land on the archer on the side of the street opposite to me, the blue of his uniform helping me notice him behind his cover.

Unfortunately, he also notices me and turns his aim in my direction. I manage to jump behind the covers, barely enough to let an arrow fly past me.

After letting down a gulp, I conjure a Flux and aim it in the general direction of the other building. It actually lands on the right window, but the archer ducks behind his own cover, after which he grabs another arrow and I jump back behind cover.

The thud I hear the arrow make against the cover causes me to gulp and shudder. How long will it be before he manages to strain the bow hard enough to cut through the cover?

I pour more energy into the next Flux, the orb turning from purple to black. While I do so, I hear another thud from behind me! For fuck's sake, can't you see that I'm planning your death?!

I take a peek out of the window, and the archer ducks behind his cover. I smirk as I cast Flux.

The spell flies to the wall right beneath the window and passes through the wooden structure like a knife through butter. I wait while poking my head from the corner, waiting for the guy on the other side to get up.

One, two, three, four, five. When is the guy going to get up? Six, seven, eight, nine, ten seconds.

He doesn't get up. I sigh and breathe in relief and stop shaking. Now, it 's over.

I peek out of the window again, this time to look at the ground below. The perimeter around the building is empty, save for the corpses of fallen soldiers. I also notice a white-haired man watching me from the afar. Smiling at me. Waving at me.

I wave back at him, he gives me a thumbs up and runs to the crowd of soldiers suffering from the attacks.

Perhaps, I can position myself at an angle where I can see the archers from the other buildings and not need to hide from them. Leaning against the side of the window leaves me a very narrow view, but it's still more than enough to see the other houses.

I see an archer poking their arms out all the way, leaving it more than enough space to hit them. Best part, they aren't even paying attention to me, only to the ground below him.

I cast an orb, and it flies almost all the way, but then a massive X intercepts it. When the two projectiles clash against one another, they explode into a massive thunderous ball of electricity. The sound it makes is so loud I have to fall to the ground and clutch my ears.

HENRY!

I pick my tome, get up and look out of the window. An entire section of the house's facade is gone, replaced by a small crater where the window used to be. On the damaged floor, I can see the pulverized remains of the man, with red paint spread all around it. There are also small fires that soon start spreading through the wood of the building.

I look away and glance at the soldiers moving forwards, the volley of arrows stopping and the burning wood and the troops marching the only sounds left. Henry has disappeared amongst the troops. There is noth-

Where is Tharja?

My hands grab the parapet of the window as I start looking for her. One look at the gates reveals they are open, but there is no sign of her or anyone else. No sign of her raven hair anywhere beneath me either, only red armored corpses spread around..

My only option left is to look ahead to the marching troops, where I do spot a cloaked black-haired person, though my heart tugs when I fail to tell if it's actually her. Please let it be her! Please, for fuck's sake, I don't want to see her dying here.

I walk back down the stairs, but stop in my tracks when I'm met by the sea of corpses in front of me. I gulp as I try to find a gap to put my feet on. Alas, there are none. Cacete…

I step onto the chest of one of the corpses. It feels like stepping on a broken plank with a wooden leg. I stumble once I move my other foot, falling down while my book clangs against metal . Dammit.

I crawl through the corpses, my hands touching each one of them while I try to reach the woman I saw earlier. It feels like swimming through the currents of the ocean, with the sea trying to swallow me whole. My breath is ragged thanks to keeping my head so close to the dusty floor.

When I reach the woman, she is casting Nosferatu at some windows. She notices me and looks at me with furrowed brow before letting out scoff. She turns to me fully while I help myself up.

"Gabriel, what were you doing?" Tharja asks, and I sigh in relief. She is alive, she is fucking alive!

"Trying to see if it really was you!" I laugh while she tilts her head. "I couldn't tell for sure with all these dead." I look her in the eyes while I open up my book. "It's like Henry's wettest dream. It's impossible to walk normally."

She nods with a faint smirk before refocusing. "Focus on the windows."

I nod to her while I assess the situation. There is no sign of archers from either side of where we are now, only an arm dangling limply from the building on our left. It's clear.

No arrows are flying from the next pair of buildings, so there should be no archer.

The next pair of buildings? I manage to spot a line flying in the air. There you are!

I approach the building opposite of where that line came from, keeping the windows in sight while I try to find an angle to spot the archer from. I eventually manage to find the person in question while they're pulling their string.

I stretch my arm as I aim at the figure and then cast the orb. The man ducks right underneath his cover. Not again! I conjure another orb in my hand, but he rises, aims at me and I have to jump to my left.

Even if the arrow hits the wooden wall behind me, my arm still fills the air moved by the arrow.. Fortunately, the man has overextended out of the window. I launch the orb and it hits him in the chest, causing him to dangle and then plummet down.

Tharja follows my example and casts a mist toward the building behind me, after which she closes her tome, takes a quick glance at me and then turns away. "This row is finished."

I nod to her as I turn to the contingent of warriors marching on, before rejoining them. All as the archers' barrage dies down. Perhaps they have all died?

I look at the building as I search for any further sign of them, while Tharja and I walk alongside and give a few glances to each other. I gulp at every glance, my gut twists itself and I place my hand against my face, in shame.

When is this corridor going to end?

The crowd of soldiers comes to a halt and I bump into one of them. I blink in confusion and hear a cacophony of sounds coming from further ahead. Have we reached the end of this massive Corredor polonês?

I look through the gaps left in the formation, then back at Tharja and then back to the gaps. "Sorry, but I have a madman to find!" I tell her, and she rolls her eyes. It stings, but I shrug and pass through the gaps.

The gaps are small, and the soldiers prevent me from stepping out of this maze they call a corridor. The cacophony gets louder the further I go, but also clearer. Soldiers dying, swords clashing against one another. spells hitting people.

I stop when a soldier blocks my path. Fuck! Where the fuck is Henry? Where the hell has that bloody maniac gone? Looking around bears no fruit.

The soldier in front of me steps forward, leaving an opening for me to see the clash going on ahead.

I'm pushed forward by the stream of soldiers, still unable to find Henry anywhere. I'm forced into formation with a swordsman clashing against one of Ylisse.

I prepare an orb, my heart beating to the rhythm of a thousand drums.

The Plegian soldier falls, and I'm left face-to-face with a meat grinder. The Ylissean soldier's armor is filled with holes and breaks, without any helmets on. I cast Flux and the orbs travel right through his forehead, after which he falls as well

Unfortunately, another soldier comes to replace him. I gulp as he approaches and ready another word, but a massive X comes and wipes out the man from the world, a red mist coming out of him. An entire column of Ylissean soldiers has been turned to mush as well.

Both sides stop moving, and a gap forms between us. There is more than enough space for someone not to be intercepted by either side! Fuck it! I run away from my position and go to the temporary gap. I don't look back and waltz away from the scene.

The only thing I can hear from either side is the blaring of screams and insult throws in both languages. A quick glance shows me the Ylisseans aren't moving at all. I hasten my pace as the distance between me and the end of the man-corridor decreases.

When I get there, I have to rest my hands on my knees as I catch my breath. I take a look around, and finally find him: Henry, readying another X to exterminate another column. Throughout all of that, he manages to give me a smirk, and I can't help but laugh. Damn it, that fucking maniacal, guts-obsessed bastard!

There are no troops in front of me and the massive avenue, so I stand around and look for someone else. Since Henry is still alive, where the heck is Reflet?

I turn my gaze to where the Ylissean troops are standing. The Plegians have formed a wall against them. At the other side of the Ylisseans, though, the pained cries and the clashing swords continue unperturbed. All the while, Henry conjures another X against the exterior of the formation, and the blood mist happens again.

A crashing sound suddenly comes from within the formation, and small tendrils emerge before expanding and piercing the formation.

What the hell is going on?

Blood drips down from the tendrils. All the swords fall with a clang, their owners' bodies still hanging by the tendrils until they disappear as quickly as they appeared, leaving the bodies on the ground.

A whitehead stands there, impassive even with her body caked in blood. "What a waste" Grima says before turning herself to face what Ylissean forces are left. Reflet rushes them and instantly pierces the first soldier she comes across, causing all the others to turn to her.

Taking advantage of the distraction, the Plegians proceed to pincer the Ylissean forces. A tall bald man swings his axe and kills left and right, and everyone else makes short work of the nearest opponents.

So it goes. So it goes that this is useless. Reflet's attacks hit the swordsmen around her. The circle turns into a semicircle, which then turns to a single point in what was once the circumference. Reflet decapitates the last man and then yawns while she resheats her sword.

Plegia's frontline strikes against the last line of defense, and any last resistance is futile. The clashes of swords die down, and the last Ylissean left against the Plegian troops drops his sword and prostrates before Mustafa.

"Seize him," the man says, his voice filled with exhaustion.

His soldiers approach and grab the prisoner by his arms, but Reflet pierces his skull first.

Mustafa frowns at her. "My Lady Vessel, why did you do that?"

Reflet's head lifts to stare Mustafa in the eyes. Her voice is monotone as she replies. "He was Ylissean. Should there be another reason?"

Mustafa lets down a gulp. "But he had surrendered. There was no reason to kill him."

Reflet places a hand before her mouth and yawns before glaring at Mustafa, who backpedals at the sight. "You saw a fellow soldier. All I saw was a vermin squirming."

Mustafa frowns but nods all the same. Reflet just shrugs and turns away from him.

"Now, if you don't mind, please gather up all the people you can find and round them up in the central area."

Mustafa opens his mouth, but Reflet shuts him off by placing a hand on her sword. "If you are going to say that you only obey your king, then I must remind you who is actually in charge of this whole kingdom."

Mustafa lowers his head. "As you wish, my lady."

Reflet smiles and walks off. All things considered, Mustafa still has a lot of soldiers left, but I can't see the squad I was in earlier. Maybe they perished during the fighting. Though at this point whether they are dead or alive matters little.

"You've heard the Vessel, find everyone in the city and gather them here," Mustafa begrudgingly commands.

His soldiers quickly disperse throughout the streets of the city. The general himself joins them, soon leaving the area in silence.

I sigh and gaze at what is left: corpses spread as far as the eye can see. From this plaza to the streets leading to the gates. A faint smell of a burning house reaches me, but it's otherwise silent..

All that remain are Reflet, Henry and me. Tharja is perhaps somewhere, there is no way she would do anything stupid. Henry approaches Reflet with his head lowered and his tome wide open in his hand. Reflet watches him as he approaches, her hand away from her sword's hilt. Henry lifts his head and Reflet huffs amused.

"Don't play dumb, you accursed bitch. What were you planning when you sent dad and his army into this meat grinder?"

Reflet replies with a cold voice, and a tone as if she's talking to an insect. "That is not your concern, insolent being."

Henry grits his teeth at that answer. "None of my concern, Grima?" He steps closer as he readies another spell in his hand. "You almost killed my dad! You were trying to get him killed. You wanted to see his guts on the floor and see his army crumble like a corpse affected by parasites and fungi. Why did you do any of it, whore?!

Reflet approaches him and places a hand on his neck, impassive. "It seems you don't understand your place. The dog you call 'father' is a hindrance to my plans. If you were following the messianic ideal, you would understand."

Henry growls and raises his hand to hit her, however Reflet catches his throat first. I rush to their side, drawing their attention, and try to pull Reflet's arm from Henry's throat with one arm, and lower the man's own with the other. "This is not the time to kill anyone, Reflet!"

Grima frowns at me while Henry's legs fail him and he clutches his throat, coughing.

"What do you mean, Gabriel? Can't you see that he is acting against my orders?!"

I grit my teeth and drag Reflet away from Henry with both hands. Grima looks hurt by my actions. Saddened, even.

"I don't care if he is going against your orders, Reflet. This is not the time to idly kill one another! And if you want to try to kill him right now, I will stand right in front of him. Do you understand?"

Reflet nods to me, lowering her head. I take a look behind me. Henry is looking at me confused but with a smile on his face, nodding to me and muttering a thank you. The smile dies down as he faces Reflet.

"I'm not going to be your lackey, or heed your asinine orders anymore. I will hate you until the day my guts spill out of me."

He turns around and walks off, shrugging just past Tharja, who looks confused by the situation.

I let go of Reflet and she turns away to kick at the ground beneath her.

"Gab, why did you do that?"

I frown at her saddened tone. I sigh. "You see, Reflet, not everything needs to be resolved in the form of violence."

She nods and moves away from me. An empty pit forms in my stomach as I gaze at the ground with a frown. What an awful way to find out you are still alive.

The beat of a wyvern's wings snaps me out of my reverie, and I look up to the black-scaled animal and try not to glare at the bastard riding it. I fail, and both he and his wyvern return the glare. However, before anything else comes of it, Reflet walks to them.

"The first part of the plan is completed."

Validar smirks at me when he hears the words coming out of the Vessel's mouth. I should have just ripped his nose if that meant he wouldn't have been able to smirk.

"What is left, Grima?"

Reflet grins at him, before pointing at the castle standing on top of the mountain. "We are coming for the Exalt. With her dead, this will be the end and no one shall be able to defeat us anymore."

---

On the road to Ylisstol castle stands a most terrible incline. My legs' tendons burn as I walk on it, sweat pouring over my brow as the massive palace in my view comes closer with every step, but never enough to end the tortuous journey.

No matter how hellish it's, it's better than having to stare at my sides.

Reflet walks in front of me, hand on the hilt of her sword while she chants another little song to herself, though I can't comprehend what she is saying. Once in a while, she turns around to give either me or the bastards at my side a smirk. The current one is turned to my left and I take a glance at the man there: Validar.

My teeth grit, but I keep my lips shut and just clutch my hands. While Reflet is looking at me, he smirks himself and rubs his hands, but when she turns around, his gaze turns to me.

I don't back down and glare at the bastard. He frowns before opening his mouth. "Why do you keep glaring at me?"

I shrug before turning away from the bastard.

How long will it be before we can reach the top?

"Such is your insolence, foreigner," Validar says, to which I roll my eyes.

"Você é irritante, sabe disso?" I reply, causing him to glare at me.

"Grima, do you know what he said?" Reflet turns her head around and frowns at it.

Reflet turns around with a frown. "I have been playing this game for a long time. I'm not entirely sure what Gab said, but he is annoyed at you,"

I narrow my eyes. "More than annoyed."

Validar stops walking, but so does Reflet, who glares at him. "Validar, stop being a petulant child. March."

"I shall continue, Your Holiness." He raises his hands like the pastor of an evangelical church, though his words reek of an apocalyptic prophet. "But I can't fathom why such an heretical man walks among us. Especially when he's trying to make your conviction falter, Your Holiness."

"Do you really think that I could convince Reflet to stop whatever she is doing? Do you really have so little faith in your god that you'd think a random guy could convince her out of her goals?

He glances back at me as he raises his shoulders. I huff at him.

"Of course, not! To think so little of Grima is a heresy in and of itself."

I nod to him and Reflet glares at him, apparently annoyed out of her mind that her march is being halted by this.

"So why are you complaining about me trying to stop this battle? I'm not the one who decided to stop moving because things weren't to my taste. Besides, you and Aversa could just take her pegasus and not deal with any of this, you know?"

Validar frowns at my answer, clutching his hand as he opens his mouth to retort, but Reflet approaches him and covers it, shutting him off..

"Validar, this is your last warning. Stop complaining about Gabriel and keep marching. You have been way more of a hassle to deal with than him. Any more stops and you are going to be dealt with swiftly. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Your Holiness," a crestfallen Validar replies.

"Good, now march! And don't you dare have the guards mess up Gabriel for that matter. Otherwise, you are going to get your reward way more sooner than expected."

A gulp betrays Validar's stoic face. Reflet smiles at the act and walks away from him, continuing her march.

Before I can continue as well, though,, Validar walks up to me with a frown. "What does Grima see in you?"

I shrug and give him a smug smile. For the first time, he grits his teeth. I step away, turn my back to him and march back to Reflect.

The smirk stays on my face, even though my legs still burn from the walk. Validar's deject hastens his pace and he closes the distance between himself and Reflet. She doesn't react to it. What a wonderful feeling, this bastard is getting really annoying. The problem now is, how long is this going to take?

"C'est la fille de la mort qui m'a donné son corps. C'est la fin de l'âge d'or, on change de décor. C'est la fille de la mort qui m'a montré notre corps."

Reflet turns to gaze at me while still walking forward. I stop singing when her eyes land on me, and I turn my head away, suddenly self-conscious."

Reflet turns her head away in response, muttering something under her breath. I sigh, perhaps being a bit more subtle would make things less boring. I only move my lips, the music playing out for me as a rough voice sings in my head.

Little by little, the palace's walls grow larger the closer we come to the mountain's peak. The white-painted walls gaze down at us with their magnanimous height and the closed gates scream for us to stay away, like those of the city did earlier. For Reflet and the others, though, this is but a formality. There is no more tension, victory is all but a certainty now.

However, is this the end?

"At last I've come to your hiding place, damned Exalt," Reflet mutters to herself. She steps toward the gate and places a hand on it, Validar's guards close behind her.

My body starts trembling, and I have to put a thumb in my mouth and bite into it. The burning pain teeth piercing the bony flesh sedates the electric anxiety flowing through my body a bit. I only stop once a certain raven-haired woman comes to me, grabs me by an arm and pulls me away from the group.

Reflet turns around and starts walking away from the gate and toward us. She will fucking kill Tharja!

I point to the dark mage and give my thumbs up, giving the biggest smile possible. Reflet stops and glares at my hands. Tharja trembles, gulping as she tries to maintain a stoic face, though her widened eyes betray her.

I place an arm around Tharja's nape and glare at Reflet. Grima stares back at me with a frown. The oh-so familiar cold sensation takes hold on my belly. I try not to clutch my hands, in spite of my instincts. Please, don't do it.

Reflet turnsaround with her head lowered and walks straight back to the guards. The Vessel speaks with Validar, but I can't hear anything from this distance. The high priest smirks at me, before returning his eyes to Grima.

Tharja keeps dragging away, up until Reflet is but another figure among the crowd. I remove my arm away from her nape, but she doesn't let go of my arm, only turns her head to me. Her furrowed brows tell the whole story, and I gulp.

"Gabriel, I'm tired. I'm tired of telling you not to get involved in Plegian politics or the Vessel's business. Don't you get it? Validar would kill you right there, if it weren't for the Vessel's intervention."

"Yes, I'm very aware, Tharja," I say, crestfallen. "Please, get away from me. Both of us know that no matter what we tell each other, neither of us is going to convince the other."

I try to raise my head and face her. She deserves a good answer. "I have chosen this hell. I will pay for it. I know that I will pay for it. There is no way around it. As It stands, I'm something way less and lower than a human. If that brings about my destruction, then it's a small price to make."

Tharja growls and glares straight at my eyes. Her voice is furious.

"You… You… What has gotten so wrong with you to think that you can throw your life away as if it was nothing? We keep repeating the same old tired conversation, but you don't seem to listen at all." She turns away from me, adds, "I would rather not see your end. But, it seems you don't feel the same way. So please, if you are trying to get yourself killed, get the least painful death," and walk away from me.

I feel downcast. I let my backpack go, grab the dagger and clutch it. The bloodshed of millions within screams at me, clamoring for me to join them. To be eliminated from the face of this world. I pant, place my free hand against the blade and press against the tattered bandage. There is no one to blame but me. There is only pain and nothing more, then I will never forget what should be done.

At the side of my vision, I notice Reflet approaches me. I stop pressing the blade against my flesh and look at her. She returns that look with a neutral expression.

"Gabriel, are you ready to enter the palace?" I nod to her. "Then follow me. Let's end this once for all."

I grab back up my backpack, dagger still in hand. I trail after her until we are back at the front gates. Tharja's stare pierces me, way worse than the dagger, forcing me to avoid looking at her. Validar looks at me with smugness on his face, and I can only sigh. I stop walking until we're right next to the gate, my back turned to both of them.

A massive ram arrives and crashes against the gates, causing a loud bang, though the gates don't bulge. Another hit comes, the structure still doesn't budge. After the third, some ornament from the top falls down with a thud. At the fourth, cracks form in the structure, a bulge forming.

The sound penetrates my eardrums, and I have to cover my ears. Please, let this end.

The final thud comes and the gates creak. They are pushed out of the way and the corridor towards the palace is revealed. Little by little, my stomach fills up with dread. My tendons burn, my mind rotten from deep inside my skull.

The blood that shall be spilled floods my mind. They are going to be like Chrom. If only Reflet can stop before her final plan. If only that happened, not that it will happen, then this pain and this dead organism gnawing to end itself will be worth it.

As Reflet walks forward, she raises her hands, signaling for everyone to hold their positions. She enters the palace, looks around and then turns back to us. "There aren't any guards here. Not on the walls, nor in the garden, nor within this area of the palace."

She then grins to herself and Validar walks up to her, bowing his head. "Your Sanctity, what are your orders?"

The Vessel unsheathes her sword and points to the entrance. "Gather whatever soldiers you can find and keep them occupied. If anyone tries to leave, feel free to sacrifice them.""

Validar nods to her, before turning around with a serious expression on his face and walking away. His eyes land on me, and he makes his most devious grin yet.

However, as he opens his mouth, Reflet interjects. "Gabriel isn't allowed to go with your forces. Be free to pick anyone else, but he is not for you to tinker with."

"Understood" Validar responds disappointed before walking over to the guards

Reflet's eyes then turn to me. "Gabriel, you and Tharja are going to join me for this."

I look at the raven-haired woman, but when she doesn't look at me, I turn back to Reflet and approach her, followed by Tharja. She grins at us, though Tharja can't meet her gaze

"There is a rat within the ranks of the Shepherds."

A rat? How so? There is no way at this point.

"Don't look so confused, Gabriel," the Vessel says. "All that matters is that he gave us crucial information." She steps into the palace and heads for the nearest left turn. "Follow me."

I and Tharja follow after her, though we remain silent as we enter. Right in front of us, there are gates leading to the central area of the palace, but on the left side there is only a small walkway. For some odd reason, it's a bit narrow and we have to squeeze to get to the other side.

It greets us with a garden on our left is dotted with flowers and on our right a stone wall. Trees and fruits are spreaded throughout the perimeter of the place.

The vessel leads the way, her hands wrapped behind her back as hums another tune. Tharja is right by my side, but I don't dare face her. The silence between us is only interrupted by the occasional chirps of birds and the sounds of our steps, but it would be more of a pleasant walk if the context was different.

The context! The small thing which would make this pleasant! That alone would make watching Reflet staring at the flowers and her own relaxed posture less dreadful.

A new pit forms in my stomach. How long will it be before she begins the slaughter? I gulp at the thoughts flooding my mind. Reflet will slaughter them like cattle. But will it be enough? Is it ever going to be enough? I need to stop her. I need to stop her, otherwise… otherwise…

I clutch the dagger's handle and look somewhere else.

My eyes land on Tharja, who is merely looking ahead, her face impassive to the world around her. When the dark mage looks at me, she is still impassive, and I have to turn away again, with my heart thumping and my hands trembling.

How can Tharja make me have such reactions? We aren't even that close! Then, why did I react like that? What is this madness?

Besides, this is only a momentary reaction in a temporary walk leading to a small event. There, it will be the end. The end is just around us, a few more minutes, perhaps even an hour, and there it shall be done. I don't know, I know nothing. There is nothing you can do. There is nothing, perhaps I don't know. I know nothing beyond this end, there is only this end and nothing else.

But there must be a reason for why I'm here, otherwise there is no logic. If I were in this place a few seconds laters, perhaps there would be an arrow in my face and so the reason I'm in here is that it was only a few seconds earlier. But what is the main cause for this? Why did I get stuck in this situation in the first place?

"Why would someone decide to betray the group they were in?" My mouth voices out my thoughts.

"I don't know and it doesn't matter, Gab," Reflet answers absent-mindedly.

It only leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. The guy is the reason I'm walking here. Otherwise, none of this would have happened the way it has. I gulp, perhaps Validar could have killed me in my sleep. Since I got stuck in that jail cell, there is no way he could have killed me!

Droga! Maldito seja ele por me colocar aqui e bendito seja ele por não me transformar em uma sacríficio para um padre maluco.

"Sei lá, talvez isso importe. Cê nunca sabe, né?"

Reflet turns around and looks at me confused. Tharja also steals a glance at me. I turn my head around as I face both of them. I raise my eyebrows. Wait, hold up a minute.

"Gab, why are you using your native language?"

I gruff at myself and lick my lips as I look away from them. "Bem… Well, I guess my language decided to slip out for some odd reason."

Grima smiles smugly. "Oh, so you are admitting for the first time that you had a slip."

Tharja looks at us befuddled. Fuck it, it's going to get way more awkward either way.

"You see, Vessel, there are a lot of reasons why my language got the better part of me," I say with the smuggest voice I can make. "Perhaps, my mind decided that it wanted to laugh at you. In some other circumstance, you would be correct."

I raise the dagger up to the air, mimicking plato in the famous painting, somehow Parmenides is going to make more sense than my own argument.

"But if you understood what I said, yet still don't get its meaning, tsk tsk." I wave the blade at her. "It seems that in spite of your powers , you still have not grasped the power to speak Português. Truly, the only thing that can stop the Vessel is not an entire country. No, it's Portuguese language"

We stop in our tracks. Tharja gazes at me with her eyes widened, as if I were mad. Reflet approaches me, points to me and mimics Aristotle from the same painting.

"Gab, I can see right through your tricks. You may try to downplay it, but I know the extension of your mouth and soul. You hide in your so-called Portuguese language, but I know what it means."

Reflet's face returns to a straight smirk. Oh what an innocent poor little Vessel.

I respond with an innocent smile. "Then reply to it. What did I say? I don't mean the simple meaning, I want you to translate it word by word. Do you get it?"

"You shall see it!" Reflet counters with her dramatic tone. "You said…" She puts a hand underneath her chin. "You said…"

My grins widen with how she keeps staggering. "You said…" Her eyes finally widen, "that you are more clueless than I imagined!"

My grin stretches to the roof. Oh god, what a clueless idiot and what a damn bastard.

I explode into laughter, kicking the ground as I laugh like a dying hyena. Refle flusters, trying to fake a frown, but her face is redder than a tomato.

"Seriously!? That is what you think I said?"

I break into laughter yet again. What a fool, what a fucking loveable fool. What a stupid mistake. Damn, how could someone be so clueless? What boundless pride, truly only a goddamn fool could hold such a beautiful view!

"You are so wrong. I can't wait to tell you how many layers of wrong you got yourself into, Vessel. You clearly can't understand my language! Truly, you are hopeless on this subject!"

Reflet gazes back at me flustered while clutching her sides. "You fool. I didn't make any mistakes. My abilities in Portuguese might be dubious, but I shall prove to you that you meant what I said!"

I facepalm. Stop giving me ammunition Reflet!

"Reflet, It means that perhaps it is important you give information about this guy. Only that, it never crossed my mind to mock you right now."

Reflet grow as red as ripe tomatoes. My inner carioca comes out and blares out.

"Porra, Cara. Cê cavou o próprio túmulo, vaso!"

Reflet tries to face me, but gets embarrassed, and I can hear a giggle forming in her mouth. I glance at Tharja and give her a smug smile. She looks horrified, before slowly shaking her head. Dear Tharja, I will do it!

I flicker my dagger back to the vessel, making Tharja shake her head harder. I turn my eyes to the portuguese-challenged goddess. "Is that a laugh I hear? Dare I say it, the powers like you that hold this world together can't speak Portuguese." I make the highest falsetto that my throat can manage. "O vaso não sabe português. Tralalalá. Ela pode destruir a realidade, matar todo o mundo! Hooray! Mas o vaso é incapaz de falar em português. Tralála."

It's all just a bunch of improvised and awful lyrics, but hey, an outsnarked Vessel makes the day better!

The Vessel explodes in laughter as well, holding the hilt of her sword tightly. Her pitch gets higher as she tries to stop her laughter, but it keeps going on and on. I turn back to Tharja and nod. Her mouth is wide open as she gazes at Reflet and at me incredulously. I laugh once again as Tharja tries to go stoic again, but the more she tries, the harder I laugh.

My heart isn't banging anymore, the coldness in my belly disappeared a while ago, so I stop laughing, steady my breath and make the widest grin I can muster. There it was, for that moment, the dark mage gave me a timid smile that met her eyes.

Peace.

The laughter soon dies down. I stop stomping my feet, Tharja goes back to her typical frowning expression and Reflet turns her back to us. I breathe for air as we resume marching.

When I gaze at the sky, an owl flies by.

"Gabriel, pay attention" Grima says, and I shake my head before returning my gaze to her. My steps crack against the stone floor. Reflet stops, turns around and points at some faint old crumpled door resting against the walls of the castle, a blue decaying painting of rotten wood.

"Prepare yourselves. There shall not be much rest after this point," Grima states as she walks towards the door and opens it, giving us a final glance before stepping in and leaving Tharja and me alone. I gulp as I place the hilt of the dagger against my mouth and grab my tome. The dark mage walks in front of me, her own tome already open as she steps in and leaves me alone.

I look around, the cold returning to my stomach and the only thing left in the sky's the damned owl and the clouds covering the sky. The tree in front of me casts a shadow over me and as I walk towards the door, the dark abyss staring back at me. There it is, with one final gulp, I enter the enclosure.

There isn't any light inside, only the faint outlines of objects surrounding me and the silhouettes of the other two, which are becoming smaller by the second. Have they walked that much already? I run towards them, closing the distance until I can see the Vessel's ivory hair again.

She once again stops in her tracks, making me stumble against Tharja's back. "Sorry, sorry."

Tharja doesn't reply to me, but then again that is expected.

As always, we don't exchange any words as we are stuck in this dark corridor. My belly is colder than hell. I take glances behind me every few seconds, as if someone would follow and kill me.

"Validar is about to reach the inner gardens. If the rat is to be believed, the Exalt has held herself up in her throne room. When the clash starts, you two shall help me catch the damned Exalt. Only that and nothing more. If someone engages you, kill them as quickly as possible then return to my aid," Reflet orders.

We are going to kill the Exalt. After all the phrases, after all the time planning, the time to see the deed through has come. However, Reflet will not stop at this, but I need her to. If Emmeryn needs to be dead and for Reflet to stop her plans, then it will be good enough. But is there no other way, Grima? Can't you just stop and look at the consequences of your actions?

The vessel turns to the darkness, her locks no longer visible as a massive presence takes their place, ready to chew me up and kill me.

Damn, I can't even control my fucking fight or flight response, how the heck am I going to convince Reflet? I sigh as I bring the dagger to my face. No, I'm not going to do it. I'm not!

The walls of the place are narrow, forcing us to keep a line. We are walking on a stairway, every step getting us closer to our objective. How much time is left for thinking?

Screams in a foreign language and the loud steps of others resonate from ahead of us. I gulp, staggering as Reflet keeps marching. My arms tremble and my neck twitches.

Calm down. Um, dois, três. Um, dois, três. Even counting doesn't help. There is barely enough time for anything! The cacophony of beats overwhelms the sounds of everyone in the room, the knocks of death coming stronger and stronger until it is all I can hear.

Reflet ceases her march, making me stumble yet again against Tharja. My body trembles yet again, why am I being so goddamn twitchy all of a sudden? I bite my tongue and pant to get over my anxiety.

Light comes out in front of us, and Grima walks up to it before turning around to cast her shadow over us, covering us as the bug we actually are to her. She looks down on us, her hand already on the hilt of her sword.

"This is the moment I have been waiting for. Do not fail me." She is engulfed by the light, the shadows disappearing to serve as the twilight of the Ylisseans.

Tharja is the next one to come forth, casting her own shadow over me, though it doesn't engulf me as much as Reflet's. She briefly mutters something before the light she hates so much consumes her.

Without her shadow, the light burns my eyes like the sun and I bare my teeth as I take another trembling step forward, drawn to the light like a moth in the night. My legs tremble, I pant at the top of my lungs. Sweat pours out and coats my brow.

There is nothing beyond what is inside of this light. There is nothing happening in the world beyond this. Everyone else exists beyond me. There is only war in this world and there is nothing a non-existence can do to stop it.

I cover my eyes with my arms and step into the light. My bare skin itches against it, feeling like I'm being burned. The light subsides until I can afford to remove my arms, my eyes blinking a few times.

There are torches on the wall standing right in front of me, but there are none on the wall behind me. Right in the middle of the room, pillars stand casting sharp shadows behind them. On my right, Ylisseans soldiers are fighting Plegians, unaware of me.

On my left, Tharja and Reflet are walking in the shadows and I crouch down to follow them, the clangs of swords and spears masking the sound of my steps on the marble floor.

The Vessel stops yet again, turns herself and beckons me to hurry. I hasten my pace, and the clangs behind me are replaced by the sound of spells hitting metal. A sound akin to an out of tune metallophone.

I reach them, my legs and arms trembling as I pant. How the heck are any of my plans going to work if I can barely walk!? I lift my head, Reflet gazes at me with stark eyes before placing her hands on my shoulders and smiling at me. I try to return the smile, but a huffed groan escapes me instead.

The Vessel frowns and turns around to continue her march. Tharja glares at my action and I clutch my hands. I sigh as she follows Grima at a faster pace than mine. Um, dois, três. Vambora.

I reach them. On the way to Emmeryn, a grey-haired archer stands opposite of us. I gulp before he takes a glance at me, with furrowed brows and a sad smile. We just stare at each other.

He has a companion by his side: a brown haired spearman of a towering height. He puts his shield in front of himself as he gazes at us with a stern look, before rushing us like a running behemoth.

Reflet looks unfazed. "Jump to the sides."

I do just that, meeting the harsh ground before hiding behind one of the pillars. I still manage to have a look, and find Reflet and the spearman clashing against each other. Grima is able to push back against the armored man's attack, who trembles against her strength. Tharja is still in the open, with a mist forming around her.

I get up and place my back against the pillar, letting out a breath in the meantime. How many of them are there? I poke my head from behind the pillar, and see Virion stealing a glance at me before pointing his bow toward Tharja.

Flux flows from my arm, the electricity burning the veins within. The projectile flies fast, but misses the archer and just resonates in the room with a thud as it hits the ground. It is still enough to throw off the grey-haired man's aim enough for his arrow to miss Tharja and hit another pillar instead.

The Rosannean man frowns at me, and I bare my teeth at him. "Tu peux pas blesser Tharja!" I scream.

"Vous ne pouvez pas me commander, Crétin!" The archer shouts back as he picks another arrow from his quiver. However an orangehead comes to him and holds his arm. Relief washes over me, my body relaxing for a moment until I notice a wind coming from my right.

I turn just in time to avoid a slash at my arm, followed by another at my chest that actually manages to land, cutting through at my shirt. Saliva pours from my mouth and the wound burns. My tome drops on the floor with a thud. At the corner of my sight, the stoic brown-haired swordsman raises his blade over his head, preparing a final strike. One aimed at my neck, judging by the look my assailant is giving me.

Swift flashes of my life come to me. The time, the inventions played by a complete ineptitude and talentless hand as myself, that could only play a small part of the notes and skip another. The time when Candide was first read and I could barely understand a word in its book. Such words are familiar yet strange like Sublime porte. But then again, wasn't I a worse Candide?

Then that one night. The one night where the little one disappeared from the face of the earth. On his neck there were the hands of my beloved figure.

Mother, it seems that your work has finally been done after all this time.

I smile until a mist comes towards the swordsman. The sword drops to his side while more of the mist envelops him from top to bottom. I gasp and cough as look at the figure dropping in front of me, the hollow dead eyes of a cadaver meeting mine.

I rise from the ground on my knees, groaning as I clutched my right arm. Blood pours my bandaged hand and I turn my head to the archer. There is no reason to say anything to him, but in spite of the stern face on him, my mouth is faster than my mind.

"Tu as perdu! Dépêche-toi, Dépêche-toi! Ou, tu perdras ta vie et non seulement tes amis."

Virion gazes at me with a shocked expression, which is replaced by an angry one when the orange head pushes him forth. A thud comes from behind them, followed by Frederick's head rolling in front of them.

Tharja and Reflet rush to my side, their bodies shielding me from the archer's view while they stare at me. Reflet maintains her sword steady in her hand while the other clenches.

Tharja lowers herself and gazes at my wounds, her frowns worsening. I sigh in pain as their sting gets worse.

Reflet turns to Tharja. "Do you have any Vulneraries?"

Tharja shakes her head gently. "Gabriel, can you see me?"

I crack a stilted laugh at her. "Sim. Eu vejo você, Tharja." I turn my eyes to Reflet. "E sim, te vejo também, Reflet.''

Both of them frown at me.

I close my eyes. "Sorry, my language has slipped once again. Yes, I see you."

Tharja sighs in relief, giving me a faint smile. Reflet does the same and unclenches her hand. "Gab, you shall be treated by a healer very soon. We have to fix your bloodied arm and chest. They are going to pay with what they have done to you."

"...understood" I gulp down before trying to stand up, my mouth frothing as my spines jerks back into place and the wound in my chest burns, the cloth gluing to my bare flesh. Reflet helps me up, her hand lightly pushing my back.

"Thank you" I mutter to her before the movement forces a groan out of me, the air filled with blood as my vision darkens for a bit. My stomach revolts and my legs tremble. As I walk to my fallen book I stumble, but Reflet catches me before I can fall. I mutter another thank you before turning my gaze back to the grey and orange-haired men, but they have apparently left. To where, I don't know, but why would Grima let them escape?

Reflet places me against the pillar, before lowering to grab my tome and handing it over to me. I grab it, even though the gestures tenses up my arm. "Thank you" I say, forcing myself to smile despite the pain.

Reflet glances at me and nods. "After what has happened, you are going to stay behind no matter what. Understood?"

"Understood, Reflet."

She gives me a faint smile and turns to resume her march to where Emmeryn is hiding.

Tharja takes a glance at me, standing still for a few seconds. There is no smile on her face, nor is there any sign of anger. All I can see, is her hair covering her eyes

She approaches me and offers her hand. I grab it and let her drag me. My chest and arm scream at me, the wind hitting my injuries makes me shiver, saliva pours out of my mouth and I groan from all of it. Not a lot of blood is coming out of my wounds, but the pain is very much there.

Before I can stabilize my legs and thank her, Tharja has already left, following Reflet like a duckling.

I cross the area leading to where Emmeryn has hauled herself up, bodies of fallen soldiers spread all around. Some of Reflet's guards lay among them, even if they don't bleed. The two still standing I can see look unscathed.

When I reach the door leading to the Exalt, Validar and Aversa are there too, glaring at my continued existence, but I pay them no mind and instead focus my gaze on the Vessel. Tharja is standing between the messianic duo and Reflet, trying to hide her looks at the Vessel behind her book.

Game over, all objectives of the chapter are done. In the game, I was spared the details beyond the failure screen. Now? Now, here is the prize after all of this pain: seeing the failure from the front row seat!

Reflet steps away from the door and toward another pillar. One from which I think I hear a feminine voice muttering something.

The muttering gives way to a scream, and my eyes widen as Reflet drags a blonde girl by the hair, looking at her like an animal.

"Such a rat. She can't even understand a proper language when she hears one." She turns her head to me. "How would you like forcing her to heal you?"

I blink at her question, before glaring at her. Reflet frowns and drags her towards me, the girl screaming in pain all the while, even as she holds onto her staff.

I gulp at the sight, the screaming invades my ears and Grima places her sword against the healer's throat, forcing her to meet my gaze.

The girl is shorter than me, the top of her head reaching my nose. Her face is a mask of horror and fear, tears flowing from her eyes, her cheeks reddened. Cold sweat flows down my brow in front of this deja vu. This girl reminds me of someone, the memories are coming back. No, I can't afford to have them right now. Think of something else, something else entirely.

I shiver, gritting my teeth and not allowing my mouth to open. My arm twitches as Reflet points at the wound there. The girl tries and fails to stop crying. If anything, her crying only worsens. The vessel presses her blade against the healer's neck further, and blood starts seeping from the wound, making the poor healer scream more.

"Do it!" Reflet barks, but the healer can't do anything but keep clutching her staff and screaming. Grima slaps the woman's face and forces her to relinquish the staff, glaring at her while she presses the blade further. Under such a glare, the blonde tries again to stop crying, only managing to reduce it to sobs this time.

The dragon puts the staff back in her hands, once again pointing to my wound. I sigh and I lower to her level, placing my arm before her and nodding. She cringes, as she places her staff over to my wound.

The weird sensation washes over me again as the skin stretches and glues back together. No matter how many times it takes, it will never not feel weird. The itching sensation around the cuts stops, the wet sensation now relegated only to my dirty clothing and I shiver as I get up and step away.

I stare at the girl, a frown on my face. My stomach churns and another migraine occupies my head. I want to vomit all the contents in my stomach. Shame fills me from the inside out. The healer takes a glance at my eyes, her staff drops to the ground as she shivers at my sight and screams once again, muttering Chrom's name.

As the cry comes, the vessel groans at the blonde's panic. She then removes her blade from the woman's throat, places it back in the sheath and pulls the healer by her hair again.

She then punches her in the stomach.

The Ylissean winces from the hit, grabbing her stomach as bile comes out of her mouth. Grima, however, pays her no mind and drags her to the door.

The door looks heavily decorated, with inscriptions and a shield standing in its middle, the material the same as that of the wall earlier.

To Grima, this is but a little problem. Another hassle to deal with. She places a hand against the door and pushes it out of the way. The door slowly creeks wide open and the Vessel unsheaths her sword.

Lo and behold, the Ylissean exalt stands right in front of us, with her guards pointing lances forward like hoplites while they shout something at us. Reflet, however, pulls the blonde in front of herself, putting her sword to the healer's throat yet again, making her sob.

The Exalt talks back to her. The guards turn their gazes away from us and to the Exalt. One of them gasps and shouts at her, but she shakes her head and takes little steps towards Reflet, all while pointing at the blonde and then at the guards. Reflet nods but keeps her blade against the healer's neck.

The exalt keeps her pace until she is right in front of us. She removes her crown from her head and places it on the ground. Grima pulls her blade away and lets the healer go. They taller blonde grabs the woman–who I only now realize is her sister–into a hug, tears coming out of her eyes.

She mutters her final words to the healer and then pulls away from her. The healer cries, clutching the woman with all her might. It is all in vain as the Exalt steps away from her and toward us.

Grima hums happily as she puts her sword away and grabs the exalt by her hair, the woman. The woman makes no sound and stares back at her captor and then at me.

I look down at my feet in shame when her eyes land on me. This is the end. Two drastically different routes leading to the same outcome: Emmeryn is a goner. She was always meant to be a goner, but this way… painful.

"With that, we are almost done." Grima gives me an ear-to-ear smile.

I can only sigh in front of the current scene. "Ok, just finish the task, then. Whatever you do, you have won."

Her grin turns into a smirk and my eyes widen when she turns to Validar. "Take care of this rabble."

While she grins, the steps get louder by the seconds, the troops march banging against the marble as they reach us. The ex-exalt with her eyes wide open stares at Grima and tries to yank away from her, but Reflet stands still.

The white-haired bastard gazes at me with annoyance on her eyes

Validar marches until reaching Reflet and speaks. "Deadlords, grab the remainder"

The soldiers come towards the small room, a mutiny happening, the sounds of clanging swords one against each other. I can see the healer getting dragged along by one of the deadlord.

"Validar, keep an eye on this animal for the time being. There are other matters I have to deal with."

Validar nods while Reflet lets the former Exalt for him to hold. In spite of his task, the man still manages to glare at me while Grima has her back turned to him and grabs me by my hand. Mas que porra?

"Tharja, you are discharged," Reflet says as Tharjfa frowns at the sight of me being dragged away by Reflet. Almost as if she had a map of the palace, she walks through the corridors and crannies of the palace as if it were her own home. It feels like a blimp until we reach the gates of the palace and she stops holding me.

The sun is covered by the graying clouds, the air filled with the smoke rising to the sky, orange dots spread all over the city. I gulp at the sight.

"Reflet… why did you bring me here?"

Reflet slowly turns her head to face me. There is a radiant smile on her face, and her eyes shine even as the world around is gray. The beacon that brought everything under her heel and turned the world from colorful to black and white.

"Gab, true celebrations should be spent with someone close to you. You taught me that."

I blink, staring at her with a frown. A person close to you? I'm not close at all.

She laughs at my confusion. "Oh Gab! You aren't even aware of yourself!"

I shake my head as I gaze at the world around me.

"Reflet, what are you talking about exactly? You want to commerat something with me, right?"

She nods, showing off the city under destruction, a grin on her face. Her face turns as red as her eyes as she looks around. "Gab, this is one of the best days of my life. My enemies are all but exterminated. Those who wish for my death that still live are coiling in fear, now that they know there is no way to stop me!"

I try to fake a smile, laughing awkwardly as her voice gleams with the same excitement as a child in a candy store. "That is good. Reflet…"

Anxiety takes hold on me as my fingers fidget together. This is one last request, it might be it. It will be enough to make her plan stop before it's too late. She is in a state of bliss, perhaps she can be more lenient.

"Yes, that is more than good, Gab." She places a hand on my shoulder, her eyes shining like the sun. For she's usurped the original king from his throne and now we watch the new queen arise as a new order begins. But such a new order makes my stomach churn when her radiance turns up to be the same as that of the king in the sky.

"This is the end. This is the end that I have always wished for. I cannot express how much this means to me, Gab. The end is more than in my grasp." She removes her hands from me and turns to look down at the burning city.

"You have finally won, Reflet!" I say with a brimming smile on my face. "So… perhaps, it would be better to cease the plans."

Reflet raises her head and stares at me with a confused look, her head tilted. "What do you mean with that, Gab?"

I point at the dead city she showed me with such pride. "You got what you wanted, right? Ylisse is burning and its inhabitants are in a long lasting suffering. So, don't think you could stop now?" The blush is gone in her face as her face furrows.

The blush on her face disappears as her brow furrows. "What do you mean, Gabriel? Stop what?"

"Your plans, Reflet," I laugh. "I remember a long while back you wanted to see the world beyond Plegia." I extended a hand to her. "Let's do it, then. You and I are standing here together. You can see the world that you have been denied, Reflet."

Minutes pass after my offer. She turns her head away from me. Soldiers pass by, and the sky is still gray. She puts her hand on her chin. I notice her kicking the ground a bit until her answer comes.

"I'm sorry, Gabriel. This world doesn't deserve to keep on living. I have waited countless years for its end. I know Gab, it might be hard, but I shall stick to my plan until the bitter end."

It's all for nothing.

"I see." My vision falters. "So there is simply no way to stop your actions."

She turns to me. "No, there isn't. I shall end this world no matter what."

I nod to her. "Understood." I walk away from her, my head trembling.

"Gabriel?" Her voice reaches my ears but they ring hollow. There isn't anything left in this world.

"Gabriel?" She asks again. Her steps crawl closer towards me. I fake a smile and turn my face to her.

"There is nothing to worry about, Reflet. I just need …" My voice falters, "preciso…pensar."

She doesn't react to me, worry written on her face.

I turn away from her and walk. My vision muddles to red lines sprawling and contorting against the world. They spread like tendrils all around me and my stomach can only churn at their sight. The migraine spreads through my head until there is no such thing as a brain anymore. Only a walking failure, a failure dooming this entire world.

Reflet will destroy the world, the world will be up in flames and rot away. And all of it is my fault. The people will die because of me, their end is going to be miserable because of me. Because I didn't stop Reflet, but she doesn't hold the blame. I couldn't stop her at all. Mother's voice comes to me.

Só é capaz de destruir

It haunts through the crumbling cracks of the thing calling itself a consciousness, a barely hanging thread of wretched thoughts all connected by the curse of existence. Something only deserving to be a punishment to everyone. However, it can be only guilty and nothing more.

A paz nesse caso, é a destruição; a guerra é a conservaçã das tribos extermina a outra e recolhe os despojos. Daí a alegria da vitória, os hinos, aclamações, recompensas públicas e todos os demais feitos das ações bélicas.

It runs. It runs as there is no tomorrow left as its legs scream and burn. The air is filled with the smell of roasted meat and the metallic smell of blood. The smoke is all around it, the houses are burning, the children are burning and their screams are the only sounds in the entirety of this world.

The soldiers all around chat to one another and show their handywork, slashing civilians or raping them. There is nothing left to exist in the capital, the innocents are the ones suffering from the mistakes of the selfish one and it wants more than anything else to turn to void. There is a small wish, that everything was a failure and it was dead from the start. For at least, the pain of everyone wouldn't have existed,

Se a guerra não fosse isso, tais demonstrações não chegariam a dar-se, pelo motivo real de que o homem só comemora e ama o que lhe é aprazível ou vantajoso, e pelo motivo racional de que nenhuma pessoa canoniza uma ação que virtualmente a destrói.

The world is left a blur, for there shall be nothing else to exist beyond the void. All of the soldiers, all of the innocents, all of the Grimleals, Tharja and everyone else to exist on this planet are gone. They are dead, the time has already been set up. Grima is ready to get her spoils and finish what she has been waiting for.

I run beyond the gates, not waving, just failing. There is no tomorrow.

Ao vencido, ódio ou compaixão;.

Ao vencedor, as batatas.

---

After one year, this chapter is finally done.

Sorry for the long wait, I didn't expect it would take one year to publish this chapter. Alas, I stand here proven wrong. It was very rough journey to create and edit this chapter. It's massive and I don't know if the results are any good. Still, I hope you can enjoy the chapter even if it isn't worth the one year wait. I apologize for any inconsistencies and case of bad grammar. I'm not greatest writer on writing battle, so I hope the battle was somewhat tolerable.

Thanks to Cavik for beta reading this chapter. He did the impossible and trudge along and corrected my awful grammar. This chapter wouldn't be possible without him.

Anyways, thanks for reading this chapter. There is only 10 chapters or so left to the fic as we enter the final arc. I will make no promises on how the release schedule is going to be. Hopefully, the wait between releases are going to be on the shorter side this time around.

I created a server. Feel free to join:

discord . gg / 8fr7N8TCbW

SkullWolfSteam: Glad you enjoyed! It was nice to see your reaction to Chrom dying. Since the inception of this story, I planned this and I'm glad I got a fantastic reaction with it. And yes, this timeline is never going to be the same.

2010si: Glad you enjoyed the chapter. I don't know if you are going to enjoy this sudden development though. Gabriel as a person, despite despising himself to the very core, still has a strong moral compass. As much he would love to be with Reflet, he can't accept the killing of massive amounts of innocent people. As for who will win in the end, I shall let that as an exercise for the reader.

Fumble Flute: Well, I still diddn't expect a chapter of this fic would make someone's day, alas I'm proved wrong. I'm really glad you enjoyed the chapter. I'm glad you enjoy the scuffed fight, even if I'm not good, I prefer those types of ugly and messy fights over the clean battles. Gabriel's dodging ability is functional, what matter allows him to survive.

Crowbars357: Fair, nobody remembers every detail of the fic they have read.

free794: I'm feel really flattered on what you have said, still I don't my writing is any good. Yea, plegia isn't that much represented on fics, sadly. Hope the final arc is up to your standards.

Guest:I'm going to keep on writing, don't worry. The weird grammar comes from my own incompetence on English and my past as writing poetry rather than prose. Still surprised that you keep thinking about the fic. I don't know how to react for that.